FORMER HOUSE COUNSELOR CHARGED WITH NEGLECT OF A VULNERABLE ADULT

Maryland Attorney General J. Joseph Curran, Jr. announced today that a former house counselor for Progress Unlimited, Inc. has been charged by Criminal Information with Neglect of a Vulnerable Adult in the second degree and Reckless Endangerment for leaving a developmentally disabled woman alone and unsupervised. Thomasina Matthews, 23, of the 8000 block of Molley Road in Baltimore County was charged in Baltimore County Circuit Court yesterday.

Neglect of a Vulnerable Adult in the second degree is a misdemeanor punishable by up to five years in prison and/or a $5,000.00 fine. Reckless Endangerment is a misdemeanor punishable by up to five years in prison and/or a $500.00 fine. A Criminal Information is an accusation, and all persons are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

This case is being prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, which has authority to prosecute abuse or neglect in facilities that receive Medicaid funds.

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